


The Road Less Traveled

by SentientSilvyn



Category: No Fandom
Genre: Dwarves, Elves, Fantasy, Fighters, Gen, Gnomes, Half-breeds, I'll probably keep tagging this forever, I'm finally writing the story of it, Magic, My friend and I got bored a few years ago, Not truly in any fandom, Roleplaying world, Written roleplay, spellcasters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-06-05
Packaged: 2019-05-09 05:40:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14710172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SentientSilvyn/pseuds/SentientSilvyn
Summary: Fyonna hasn't known freedom in almost twenty years. Her captors, a small tribe of Dwarves, has kept her under lock and key, until a Gnome stranger frees her in the dead of night.However, before Fyonna can get very far, she meets a stranger. One with a ripped army jacket, and a need for vengeance. She just got herself in more trouble, didn't she?





	1. Strangers

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I know I have better things to do but I JUST LOVE THIS ROLE PLAY SO MUCH. Any feedback is welcome, but the story pretty much is what it is. Maybe a few minor detail or conversational changes as everything pans out.   
> This story includes basic fighting styles (Archery, dual-wielding, spellcasting, greataxe/broadsword use), Most magic styles (Healing(Green hue), illusion(Purple hue), Destruction(Red hue), Conjuring(Yellow hue), Manipulation(Blue hue)).   
> Varying races are used(Anything from humans, to half-elves, to high elves), and there will be very chaotic points. I'm not sure how graphic I'll get with the violence, so tags will be changed as necessary, but this is your warning!  
> Thank you all for reading!

I’d lost all sense of direction. All I knew was I had to keep running. If I stopped running, they would catch me. I couldn’t be caught, I couldn’t go back. Even if I had nowhere to go, anywhere was better than there.

I knew I was running through Tear, near the Anar border, heading North towards the border to Elven lands. If I made it there, maybe I still had living family. Not quite home, but better than nothing.

I still wasn’t running on much sleep. Stopping for those few hours over the last three days had cost me enough ground. I was clumsy, bleary from no sleep, and leaving an obvious trail as to where I was going. Broken sticks and bushes with scraps of cloth on them littered my trail, but there wasn’t anything to be done about it.

I had to stop for a moment, to catch my breath. In between breaths, I slowly came to the realization that I wasn’t being followed. At least, I couldn’t hear them anymore. No more shouting in that harsh Dwarven tongue, no more dogs barking. The forest was silent, save for the scarce bird chirping.

I blinked, scanning the forest quickly. I recognized the terrain slightly. I was just outside of Tear, the capital of the country of the same name. Humans were so weird sometimes, they made names way too confusing. However, being near the capital meant I wasn’t as far North as I thought it was, though it would explain why the Dwarves had stopped following me. Humans and Dwarves weren’t exactly friendly.

I started walking again, slowly making my way between trees and scanning the forest. There was a small rustle of bushes behind me, what sounded like a squirrel or raccoon. It was only when I heard it a second time, this time closer, that I whirled around, scanning the environment.

At the third rustle, I jumped up into the low hanging branches of a near tree, pulling my bow out as I got my feet under me.

My bow wasn’t anything special. Made of Oak and with a few carvings of my own design in it. It was mine, but it wouldn’t make me recognized by it.

As I notched an arrow and scanned the ground, all I saw was a man, stumbling through the forest as I had been. He was either drunken or as tired as I was. His jacket was completely torn up, his boots covered in mud, but he had twin scabbards strapped across his back, one sword already in his hand. The tip dragging through the mud wasn’t going to help him much, however.

As he moved further into the light, and the shadows moved off his face, I almost instantly recognized him. Everyone knew who Riann Silverlyn was. Son to the King of Tear, General of his army. Definitely someone you wouldn’t want to go toe-to-toe with.

His jacket being in tatters wasn’t a good sign, however. It held no badges, no medals earned in wartimes.

I leaned forward, trying to peer a little closer, but almost overbalanced. As I caught myself, the branches rustled, altering him of my presence. His focus shifted to look at the tree, eyes boring into the space mere feet from where I was perched.

I still had that arrow notched. As he took a step forward, I let it loose a few inches to the right of his head, quickly moving closer to the trunk of the tree to keep him from tracking me too closely.

That halted his movement completely, his body freezing. Against my better judgement, I shouted out, “Who sent you?!”

He gave no response, only started walking closer to the tree again. I knew I would lose a fight in this state, so all I could do was keep running. I was so tired of running. However, running between trees was infinitely more interesting than running across solid ground.

Branches dipped under my weight, but I kept my balance for the most part. Once I was far enough into the branches of a neighboring tree, I sat back and watched this man attempt to climb with shaky arms and feet that weren’t used to gripping bark. I chuckled under my breath.

Once he was up the tree, and had parted the branches enough to see my face, I turned my bow with another notched arrow towards him.

My voice was a little breathless as I spoke again. “What do you want?” I forced my hands not to shake, and he jumped over onto the same tree I was in.

“Oh, so the slave-girl speaks? I saw you running, and just so you know, there is already a bounty on your head. I thought it would be smart to return you to your masters, save them the trouble of continuing to chase you.” He slowly walked closer, losing his footing twice, but that grim expression never left his face.

“You won’t take me back.” I gripped my bow tighter, pulling the arrow back so the feathers brushed my cheek. “I’ll never go back!” I let the arrow loose, grazing his cheek and smiling in satisfaction at the burning rage that crossed his expression.

Dying here was better than going back to that hellhole.

“Oh, that’s the last time you’ll ever do that!” As he finished speaking, he lept at me, one sword drawn, with the other hand reaching for the second, shorter sword.

I dodged the first blow, ducking under the blade and dropping to a branch below me. Once my feet hit the branch, I was running. It was slow going, as the trees became thinner and spread farther apart, and Riann was gaining quickly. That tiredness in his face must have faded at the adrenaline of a battle.

Once I met a jump that was too far for even myself, I was forced to stop. I had a small dagger strapped to my hip, next to my tiny bag of supplies I had managed to steal.

I strapped my bow back onto my back, the string cutting into my neck slightly, and pulled out that measly dagger. I was going down swinging, even if I would be going down pretty fast.

I shifted my stance slightly as he leaped onto the branch. It was sturdy, and only swayed slightly under our combined weights. During the run, he had apparently sheathed both of his weapons, the hilts sticking out past his shoulders.

He was approaching slowly, and I raised my dagger that much higher. He immediately put his hands up, supposedly being placating, but I was tired and pissed off. “Hey, no need for that, I just want to talk to yo-woah!” I lunged at him, knocking him off balance, but he pulled his sword out.

Parrying the next blow, he swung as me faster than I could perceive. Purple sparks flooded my vision, and suddenly my cheek was alive with burning pain. I could feel the blood running down my cheek, soaking the top of my tunic, some of it even running into my mouth.

My hand flew to my cheek, trying to staunch the blood flow.

“Now,” he said, already sheathing his sword, “You’re going to come sit with me, and we’re going to have a little talk, yeah?” He jumped down to the ground. Luckily, it was a short drop, and I made it to the ground with little consequence.


	2. Plan of Action

As soon as my feet hit the ground, I collapsed back against the tree I had just jumped out of. I knew I could fix the damage to my cheek. It wasn’t a deep cut, but something told me that I was already in dangerous waters. No use making the situation worse. 

He was still facing away from me, with his arms crossed. His head was cocked, as if he was lost in thought, before he whirled around and stalked towards me. I pressed myself against the tree as he crouched in front of me, pulling me up by the necklace I wore around my neck.The one thing I had left from my mother, the symbol of a healer-in-training.

“Who are you, girl, and where did you come from?” I wrapped a hand around his wrist, keeping the necklace from snapping in half from the presence. Still, I kept my mouth shut. His hand moved until it was gripping the collar of my shirt, and shook me. Hard. “Answer me, damnit!” 

I set my face into a scowl as I spoke, “I’m Fyonna Kyra, I came from Illian, which should tell you enough about me.” I managed to pull his hand away from my shirt, shoving myself further into his face. “And what are you doing out here, muddy and looking like a commoner? I thought you were the general of the damned army.”

“Well, I was.” He stood up, wandering a little further away. “Long story short, my younger brother took the throne when my father died, and kicked me out of the house.”

He turned back around in time to see me pressing at my cheek once again, the bleeding restarted from the force of being jostled around. I rooted around in my pack for a few minutes, trying to find a handkerchief. 

While in the process of locating one, I heard Riann snap his fingers. I paused in my search, looking up at him curiously, before I realized my collar wasn’t wet anymore. Looking down, the red blood was gone, and my mouth did not taste of that coppery blood taste either. I raised my hand to my face, and my mouth dropped open. The cut was gone. No lingering blood, no scar. Nothing.

“What the…” I kept prodding my cheek.

“Illusion magic, my dear. I picked it up during my younger years. Comes in handy every now and then.” As he spoke, his face scrunched in a grimace. He raised a hand to his cheek, wiping through the blood he had been previously ignoring. “This, however, is apparently completely real.”

I stood up, reaching my hand out towards his face. I also had to reach up, given the several inch difference between our heights. “Here, let me help with that.” He flinched back slightly, and I just chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you.” He scoffed, but let me lay my hand against his face. The wound began to glow with a green light, flesh knitting together and stopping the blood flow. 

As soon as I was done, he backed away from me, crossing his arms and keeping his distance. I proceeded to remove my bow and lay it against a tree. Not my problem if he was going to be pissy. I, however, wasn’t going to spend the evening in silence, and turned back around to talk again.

“So, I’m going to assume that you would want to set up a camp or something.” I scanned the forest, seeing a few bushes that have dried up. “I’m sure we can get some firewoo-” He cut me off with a wave from his hand.

“You aren’t going anywhere for the time being. You’ve just wandered into a territory that isn’t your own, which is honestly a crime in and of itself, but I also don’t know enough about you to trust you.”

“To be fair, I don’t know much about you either.” He just glared at me, and I gave him the most shit-eating grin I could muster.

“My past isn’t exactly private. Either way, you’ll be staying here, and I’ll be back.” He stalked towards me, leaning down into my personal space once again. “And don’t even  _ think _ about trying to get anywhere, I’ve learned how to track creatures much sneakier than yourself, girl.”

And he was walking off, I muttered, “I have a name, bastard.” If this was what the free world had to offer, my life was going to be a royal pain in the ass. 

I sat down next to my bow again, rooting through my pack and pulling out the few remaining pine-nuts I had brought with me. They were basically flavorless, but they kept hunger from getting too unbearable, so they did the job. 

I made a quick check over the rest of myself. My shoes were all but ruined, and the bottoms of my feet were bruised from running over rough terrain. The edges of my shirt were torn from the bushes, and my hair was probably flying in all directions from the short braid I shoved it in. That was gonna be a bitch to untangle. 

When Riann came back, his arms were full of enough logs to keep a fire going most of the evening. On top of the wood, he had a fairly large rabbit dangling from a knot of rope on his hip. My mouth immediately started watering. When was the last time I had real meat?

He still had his tattered jacket on, even though it was doing nothing against the faint fall breeze. However, it didn’t look like it was ripped from useage. There were patches missing from the front and shoulder panels, but virtually nowhere else. It dawned on me so suddenly, as I was going back through the earlier conversation.

His badges were forcibly ripped off. Probably a consequence of being demoted. 

I just watched him as he started creating a fire, stacking the logs he didn’t use in a pile to the side, and then pulling out a worn flint to use to ignite the wood. He kept sneaking glances at me, and I just leveled a glare at him every time our eyes met. 

Soon enough, a fire was going, and the rabbit was being roasted. The smell was tantalizing, and my mouth immediately started watering. Still, neither one of us spoke. 

The rabbit didn’t take long to cook, and he wordless threw half of it at me. It was hot, probably burning my hands, but I was so hungry I didn’t have any care in the world. 

He ate fast, efficiently. I, however, was going to savor this meal. I had no idea when I’d get another one. When he was done, he just sat and watched me. 

I stopped with a mouthful of food, lowering my eyebrows. Talking around the food, and hoping he understood me, I asked him, “What is so damn interesting about me?”

He shifted slightly, propping his head up on a hand. “Well, it does seem strange that you’re wearing the clothes of a slave.” I stiffened at his words. “Not only that, but that’s the handiwork of Dwarven tribes. But somehow, you’re in the Tearean wilderness, unharmed and with no pursuers.” 

“Well, that would make sense, since I’m running from a Dwarven tribe. 3 days ago, I got out. Managed to outrun the stubby assholes.” I paused for a minute, putting the rest of the rabbit in my lap and looking at my hands. “Not like I have anywhere to go from here, though.”

His eyes widened for a minute, before he threw his head back and laughed. “You really are insane, aren’t you? Either way, I’m headed… away from here. You’re more than welcome to join me, or brave these woods alone.” He paused, righting himself, letting his expression turn more serious. “Actually, I’m not giving you a choice. I’d hate for you to die, and you probably will die out here alone. So, you’re coming with me.”

I shrugged, “I’m getting some sleep before we go anywhere. You should too.” I started climbing back up the nearest tree, leaning against the trunk for balance. I heard rustling below me, and peeked down long enough to see him leaned up against a neighboring tree. 

Things weren’t going great, but they were going, and that’s what was important. I would take things one day at a time.


	3. Return

I started awake the next morning, with sunlight beating down on my face. It took me a minute to realize where I was. I was in Tear, near its capital, sleeping in a tree. I had miraculously not fallen during the night, but looking towards the ground revealed Riann was already awake and packing up what little stuff he had with him. 

I slid out of the tree, landing next to him. He just glanced at me out of the corner of his eye, going back to tying his pack shut. I no sooner had by pack strapped to my belt and my bow in hand again than he was already walking away from the makeshift camp. 

As we were walking, still neither one of us talked much. I stayed a step behind him, enough to his right that I could see around him but not much of myself was visible.

After almost an hour of deafening silence, I took my chances. “Soo…” He spared a glance in my direction. Maybe this wouldn’t hurt to ask? “I know you were once the general of the army. Everyone knows your face, plus you did mention it. But, what exactly happened? As far as news has spread across towns, you’re still the general.” 

He stiffened, not exactly visibly, but there was a slight falter to his steps, a tension that held his shoulders. He was quiet for a long time, and I was about ready to speak again when his shoulders deflated and he finally began to speak.

“This isn’t a good story, nor one I like to recall. So don’t interrupt me.” I nodded, even though he wasn’t looking at me. 

“Well, as most of the population knows, I was raised to be a soldier, as was my brother. When our father died, as I was a general in the army, the throne went to my brother. One day, during the summer, as I was preparing to march into a battle, something strange happened. I was in the middle of a drill, and a message came to my from my brother. 

“He’d never invited me to anything before, so I thought it was a little strange, but noone denied a counsel with the King and lived. I walked into the throne room, watching my younger brother of 5 years perch on the throne. The throne that should have been mine.” His hands clenched into fists at his sides, before flexing open again. “He apologized for calling me in, but it was a false apology. He couldn’t care less what he was about to do.

“Two guards came up behind me, restraining me. Under the claim of controversy, my younger brother being a king with his older brother in a position below him, he had my badges forcibly removed, until nothing was left but the tatters of this jacket, and my own two personal swords.

“As soon as he was content that every badge had been torn away, he proceeded to banish me from Tear. A kill-on-sight order. That was only yesterday.” He sighed, staring up at the sky, but continued to walk forward. “I was planning on heading northwest, out of the country.” His head rotated, looking down at me. “Was that enough information for you, prying half-elf?”

I bristled, looking away from him and nodding. Obviously I’d pushed some buttons just asking about it. It was still fresh in his mind.

We kept traveling the next miles in silence. But it wasn’t as uncomfortable as it had been. The few times we shared words, it was attempting to figure out the correct direction to take, or something similar. 

Soon, we reached a grove of trees that looked...extremely familiar. I halted, nearly tripping myself by stopping so quickly. I knew he had said we were moving west, but We had already reached the nearest border to Anar. Where Dwarves lived. Where I was  _ running from _ .

As I was just standing there, he kept walking for a few paces before he realized the silence that now followed him. Turning around, he cocked his head and asked, “What’s the matter, girl? We have to keep moving. It’s already mid afternoon.”

I just shook my head, taking a step back. “What the hell is the matter?” I laughed deeply, without an ounce of humor in it. “You have no fucking idea what’s happened in the last 20 years. None at all.”

He scoffed, and started walking back towards me. “No, I don’t. Because someone has kept her little mouth shut about the matter. So, either fess up, or cross the gods damned border.”

I hesitated a minute, fingering my necklace. There wouldn’t be much hiding it later down the road, so I started talking, determinately not looking at him as I did so. 

“I was 5 when this all started. A couple of my friends and myself were practicing our magic lessons, and all of us wanted to move on and go to the Healer’s College when we grew up. I think it was mid-afternoon, and I remember my parents running towards our entire group, then several people scattering, some clad in armor.

I was scooped up, and we began running to our house. Well, it was grander than a regular house. Perks of being half of a princess.” I took a deep breath, keeping my voice from hitching. “My mother was sister to the Queen of Arborlean. She fell for a common soldier from, well, Tear, and was banished from both countries. 

“As we ran for the palace, suddenly my parents stopped running, and my father’s grip on me tightened, before putting me down behind him. He told me to keep my head down, and stay safe. Both my parents lit their hands up with elemental magic, sending streaks of it careening for the Dwarves standing in the pathway.

“The Dwarves kept coming. There were too many. I couldn’t do anything, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up shackled in some rickety cart. I slept on and off for days, fading in and out of consciousness, trying not to think about what just happened. 

“We got to their camp, and I essentially became their slave girl. They still trained me to fight, but kept weapons away unless I was under their watch. When I wasn’t training, I was tending the fields or repairing their armor.

“I was twenty-five when I saw another being that wasn’t a Dwarf or another slave. She met me in the dead of night, but I still have no idea who she was. She helped me slip out in the dead of the night, four nights ago.”

I could feel the tears dripping down my cheeks, and I still wouldn’t meet his eye. I was willing to bet he had a look of pity on his face, and that was the last thing I wanted to see in this moment. 

He was silent, so I stayed silent. I could hear leaves crunching under his feet, slowly getting louder, before a hand landed on my shoulder, roughly.  I jerked my head up to look him in the face.

“Well, as long as you don’t let your past control you. That’s what’s important.” My mouth dropped open. “You keep practicing, I’m sure you’ll be one of the strongest archers around in no time. However, we still have to keep moving, and we don’t have any way to go but forward. Which means you need to put that behind you now.”

He started walking away, and I stumbled to catch up, crossing the border as a shiver passed through my body. “Plus, your skill may come in handy at this next stop.”

“What the hell are you talkin-” Before I could even finish my sentence, I saw what he meant. On the horizon stood the city of Tarbean, the capital of Anar.

I couldn’t let myself stop, because I knew he would leave me behind in these wilderness. Lets hope they don’t recognize me in the slightest.


	4. Near-Miss

When we reached the outskirts of the city - there were three walls you had to get through before you reached the true city - Riann walked straight up to the guards standing near the first gate.

The one on the right held his hand up, stopping us both in our tracks. I bowed my head, hoping my hair would at least hide my face. “State your business.”

“We’re just seeking refuge for the rest of the day and night.” I shifted on the spot, and guard turned his attention to me. 

After a few seconds, he grunted, and my shoulders relaxed minisculely. “You’re free to go in, but I would be careful with that one. They may mistake her for the missing slave most every dwarf is looking for.” He chuckled, “You got lucky, finding yourself a half-breed. They rarely wander out of their own country. Anyway, you’re free to go in. Be careful in the city!”

They pushed the doors in, and both of us walked through. Once we had cleared the doorway, I turned to watch them pull the gate shut again. We had about a half-mile walk to the next gate. We were standing in the garden district of the city. Farmers wandered by, moving across roads and into each others fields.

I’d been in the city once before. The Dwarves dragged me on a supply run a few months ago. That was the most freedom I would ever get from them. 

By the time the gates had finished closing, Riann had turned back to me. “That actually gives me an idea.” Obviously I wasn’t able to hide the apprehension from my expression. “Look, this situation is horrible all around, but they’re looking for an  _ abandoned _ slave. Someone running around on her own. Just play the part until we’re out of the city, and we might be in the clear.”

“They’ll still be suspicious. Slave around here are bruised. Beaten. Most of my.. Wounds have healed.” His hand lit up purple for a split second, and my eyes flashed to his face.

“The pain will only feel real, and it will be like wearing a coat.” His hand turned purple again.

I braced myself, and said, “Make it quick.”

I expected the pain, but it felt like I was actually being beaten and battered around. The air rushed out of my lungs, and I stumbled on my feet. I clutched my middle as the pain kept coming. The final blow left me with a quickly bruising black eye, and most of my visible skin had blossoming bruises, changing color quicker than normal bruises would. It hurt to move my arms, and walking was going to be hell. I’d pay him back later. 

I straightened up slowly, forcing myself not the groan from the effort, and met his eyes again. Something like concern flashed there for a millisecond, before he grabbed my arm and started hauling me to the next gate. It was all I could do to not fall over. 

The next guards were very similar to the first, letting us through without a problem. The blacksmith’s district was eve messier than the gardeners district, somehow. Soot stained every street, and while the distance between the two gates was smaller, there was infinitely more packed into the space.

We only ran into a small amount of trouble at the next gate, while they searched both of our packs. I had still had mine on me, and that was an interesting conversation. Riann managed to convince the guards that I was, essentially, a pack mule. They were skeptical, but let us in anyways. Surprisingly.

Riann still had my bow in hand as we entered the city, and quickly strung it over his shoulders at the looks of a few guards. It looked almost to small on him, being made for someone my height, and not his. 

He surveyed the streets, and I muttered under my breath, “There’s a tavern a few streets over. Look for an old blue sign, it’s called the Bannered Mare.” He nodded imperceptibly, starting to move through the streets, shoving people out of the way and looking around for the small blue sign. 

By the time we found the tavern, we’d been walking for a while. People were actively staring, and I glared back at a few of them, but mostly kept to myself. It was all I could do not to shake in fear of just being in the city again. 

He paused just outside the door to the tavern, gripped my arm a little tighter to get my attention. When I looked up at him, he asked, “You ready?”

I just nodded. There wasn’t anyway I could say no. We couldn’t go back now. 

He pushed the door in, almost getting plowed over by a group of people already shitfaced. It was only mid afternoon, but these were also Dwarves. 

By the time we made it to a table in the back corner of the tavern, most of the people here were aware of our presence. I understood why Riann was essentially making a fool out of himself, but still. Dignity.

The barkeep came over after a moment. He was still holding a dirty glass, wiping the inside out with a cloth. He turned his gaze from the glass to Riann as he walked up, directing the question towards him. “What can I get you today?”

Riann turned his head from the  _ oh so interesting _ conversation with a gentleman at another table, giving the bartender a once-over before speaking, “A pint of ale for me. And whatever the girl wants.” He waved his hand towards me, turning back to his previous conversation.

I raised my head slightly, smiling at the bartender. “Just a glass of water, please.”

The bartender nodded, grunting gruffly, and started to walk off back to the bar. “Oh, and we’ll need a room for the night. Doesn’t have to be big, but make sure it locks.” Riann spoke without even looking over, and the bartender nodded once again.

While he got our drinks ready, I took a look around the room, which was already far emptier than it had been when we walked in. We were seated in the back corner, giving me a good view of both the room and the front door. Three tables were currently occupied, two were filled with Dwarves, loudly drinking and making conversation, and one housed an elf, clothed in a black robe. 

Two more Dwarves walked in as I was looking around, and I quickly turned my head back towards the table just in time for the bartender to come back with our drinks, and a key. That must be for our room.

I kept glancing at the Dwarves as I sipped my water. I vaguely realized Riann had downed his entire glass in nearly one swig, before slamming it back down on the table. One look at him, a small, almost unnoticeable jerk of his chin, and he’d swept the key up. A small ‘3’ was on the same ring as the key, and thusly opened the door with a ‘3’ on it. 

The room was tiny. A small desk stood in one corner, and beside that was a single cot, and a half dresser. Riann immediately set the weapons and packs down on top of the dresser. I moved to pick my bow back up as he sat on the edge of the desk. 

“I’m so sorry for any of that. You should…” He seemed to gather himself, “You should never have had to go through that again. Take the bed tonight, I’ll be up for a while anyway.”

I walked over, standing next to him, placing my bow down yet again. “Rest. You’re used to running on sleep. I’ll wake you if anything happens, okay?” His brow furrowed, but he sat on the bed, slowly moving himself into a resting position. 

I climbed up onto the desk, opening the window and propping myself in the windowsill. I pulled my hair down, running my fingers through the tangles for the first time in weeks as I watched the crowds. The sun hadn’t gone down yet, but it would soon. 

Once my hair was once again free, while not quite clean, I turned back into the room. Riann had rolled over onto his side, facing the wall. I reached down, picked up my bow and my one dagger, and laid the ranged weapon across my lap. A new symbol never hurt. 

I started carving, without a real image in mind. The light slowly faded, as the small image of a hawk eventually appeared right near the handle of the bow. I lit the lamp on the desk next to me, swinging my feet out of the window and watching the final light fade from the sky.

For how crazy everything had been, sleep was the last thing on my mind. I was finally-somewhat-in the free world again.

I sat like that for hours, as the street traffic died away. I shifted my gaze over to the door every few minutes, just keeping tabs on everything that’s going on. 

A few hours later, I heard a thump. Then another. Then a third, louder thump, followed by a low voice. Riann was already stirring from the noise, and I was across the room in a heartbeat, waking him the rest of the way and shushing him. 

Another thump came, and, against a protest under his breath, I moved closer to the door, peeking out through the cracks between the frame and the actual door. In the hallway were the two Dwarves who had walked into the bar, stumbling down the hallway. 

Looking at them a little closer, I realized they’re from the tribe. They must have recognized me in the lobby,  _ like I knew someone would _ .  

I scrambled over to where Riann was already slinging the packs over his shoulders, and I grabbed my dagger, quiver, and bow off the table next to him, strapping the dagger and quiver on my belt. Once Riann had the packs secured, he kept both his swords out, still scanning my face in an attempt to gather just what’s going on. 

Not even a millisecond after I had nocked an arrow, the door was smashed in. By a miracle, half of it remained on the hinges, but we still were showered by splinters. The two Dwarves shared a look, before turning back to me and speaking in Dwarven. I wasn’t brushed up enough on the language to recognize the rougher dialect.

They only taught me the simplest phrases, only what I needed to know. However, they both raised their weapons, and I knew this had just turned south. Riann shifted slightly, putting his weight towards the front of his body and sliding slightly in front of me as I pulled out that damn dagger again. 

The first one lunged, meeting blow for blow with Riann. Both men got the occasional blow on the other, but I was distracted with the second one lunging at me, this one with a damned warhammer. 

I dodged out of the way of the first blow, but the second one caught me across the shoulder. I screamed in pain, backing up farther. Until the backs of my shins hit the bed. Riann apparently had the second one backed up against the wall, and turned in time to see me fall, the second Dwarf stalking closer.

“Fyonna!” At his voice, something clicked in me. I rolled to the side, using the pressure from the hammer hitting the bed to gain momentum, and propelled myself past the Dwarf, grabbing Riann with my good hand. 

“Window.. Now..!” My left arm still wasn’t moving. I could fix it if - when - we got away. Riann all but threw me out the window, and the jarring landing on the ground had me stumbling for a moment as pain seared through my shoulder. Riann landed moments later, gripping my right arm and dragging me towards the woods.

“You can still climb?” I heard the Dwarves clamoring out of the tavern behind us. Gritting my teeth I nodded.

“I don’t really have a choice, do I?” A grumble from him had us moving ever faster into the wood. I really only had one hand to grip the damn tree with, so it was more of a jumping game until I was actually in the branches. From there, it was smooth sailing.

We hit an empty clearing about two miles into the woods, where I finally let myself slow down. The pain finally began to seep into my mind, becoming unblockable as my feet hit the ground once again.

I placed a my hand on my left shoulder, letting the green energy seep beneath my skin as Riann stood next to me. Once I had caught my breath, I cleared my throat to get his attention and spoke. “I told you going there was a bad idea. I warned you.. I told you about my past, and we walked right into the  _ Dwarven _ capital! And now they have confirmation that I’m alive.” I turned my head away from him. “They know I’m alive, what I look like, and where I am. Probably even where I’m going.”

I felt the magic slip off my face as I talked, but I pushed on, ignoring the look on his face. I didn’t want to read into it. “We need to keep moving.  _ I _ need to keep moving, whether you come or not. I need to get to Illian. However, I need to go through Tear to get there. And, they have most of the border by Anar blocked off. Unless we want to go back the way we came, and I’m pretty sure they’re on high alert right now.”

Riann scanned the woods for a minute,almost as if he was ignoring me, but then he turned his gaze to my injured shoulder, and the slowly working healing spell. “Well, to be fair, we’re on the wrong side of everything to get to Illian right now. We’ll run out of supplies before we’d hit the border, even without any hold-ups. I know a town in Tear, and I have a friend there.” He sighed, running a hand through too-long hair. “At least, I hope I do. He’ll help us restock if possible, and then we would be able to make it to the border.”

I felt exhaustion starting to tinge the edges of my vision, blurring the treeline. The spell faltered, but it had done enough help that the pain was manageable. “We’re sleeping before we go  _ anywhere _ .”

He nodded in agreement, and I hunkered down against the tree for yet another uncomfortable night.


End file.
